The PI will continue his research on Mg2Ge04, director attention to: (i) Growing coarser spinel polycrystals by a simple procedure recently discovered; (ii) investigating volume-transfer creep; (iii) determining the rheology of both phases utilizing unique high-resolution molten salt cell; (iv) mapping out the boundaries of the field in which the martensitic mechanism operates; (v) pursuing the effect of grain size on the kinetics of transformation; (vi) testing Kirby's deep-focus earthquake hypothesis; (vii) looking for a martensitic transformation; and (viii) investigating the effect of synchrotron radiation on grain-growth kinetics. He also will conduct a survey of similar problems in Ni2Si04 with new 4.5GPA deformation apparatus nearing completion.
